Furniture, particularly furniture for sitting, such as chairs, loveseats, sofa, and sectionals, have heretofore been generally designed for either permanent use at a given location or for temporary use to be moved about easily. Such furniture for permanent use has generally been constructed with a rigid frame to which the upholstery is permanently attached so as to not generally be movable relative thereto (except, of course for removable cushions and the like). Such permanent type upholstered furniture is also generally heavy and bulky, being difficult to store and transport, generally requiring special facilities and handling by skilled movers or furniture handlers.
Portable furniture, on the other hand has been previously suggested, which may be easily stored and transported. Such furniture is generally designed to be as light in weight as practicle and to either fold or stack for storage. Upholstery is generally minimal on such furniture, being limited to a simple seat cushion, perhaps a small back cushion, and rarely, small arm cushioning. Overall upholstery, however, is rarely provided, or clearly denotes the folding or temporary nature of the furniture.
Chairs, and the like, have also been heretofore suggested wherein bands of cloth or the like have been combined with frameworks, either folding or rigid, to provide slings for supporting people more or less comfortably. In some instances such bands or slings also provide sume structural interaction with the frame members, as providing limits beyond which the frame members cannot extend. Hence, slings and frames have been combined into such furniture as director's chairs and butterfly chairs.
Further, slip covers have been heretofore suggested to be form fitted over chairs, settees, sofas, and the like. Generally to enable the color or pattern of the upholstery to be easily changed, or to provide protection for the permanent upholstery of the piece. Such slipcovers, however, seldom if ever have any active cooperation with the framework and therefore do not provide any structural part of the furniture. Furniture wherein a removable fabric covering and a frame structurally interact heretofore required complex fastening systems therebetween. Ease of portablility is therefore adversely effected, as are cost and weight of the assembly.
Rohrer U.S. Pat. No. 762,441 (June 14, 1904) relates to a folding go-cart (perambulator or stroller) having laterally collapsible side frame members joined by medially hinged and foldable seat and foot supporting members providing a rigid frame when unfolded. The seat back also comprises two foldable members hinged together in the middle.
Gutter U.S. Pat. No. 1,420,095 (June 20, 1922) relates to a laterally folding chair having back and seat members also centrally hinged and hinged to side frames. The side frames include tubular members and the hinging thereto of the back and seat members is by means of straps secured thereto and passing around the frame tubular members.
Green U.S. Pat. No. 1,736,473 relates to a collapsible bench having plural sections, each of which comprises a side frame and fabric seat and back members spanning therebetween. The intermediate side frames comprise common frames for the seat sections on each side thereof.
Masury U.S. Pat. No. 1,763,001 relates to seat upholstery especially for seats such as in passenger carrying vehicles and particularly to removable slip covers. Separate covers are provided for the seat cusion and the back, the back covers having snap fastener elements cooperating with mating elements on the seat backs.
Fisher U.S. Pat. No. 1,933,372 (Oct. 31, 1933) relates to slip coverings for arm chairs which are installed downwardly over the chair back and seats and which include arm cover portions. Zipper type fasteners are used to hold the slip cover in place.
Johnson U.S. Pat. No. 2,001,252 (May 14, 1935) relates to a foldable chair comprising a plurality of closely spaced parallel slats held in pockets in cooperating fabric sleeve members. Separate sets of slats are used for the seat and the back portions or sections, and the chair folds between the seat and back portions. No legs or arms are provided.
Liska U.S. Pat. No. 2,043,669 (June 9, 1936) relates to a prie dieu having padded knee rests and top plates hinged centrally from laterally foldable side frames. A centrally disposed supporting bracked depends from the central hinge area of the knee rests.
Cornish U.S. Pat. No. 2,632,654 (Mar. 24, 1953) relates to a folding perambulator having centrally hinged seat and foot rest portions hinged to a pair of laterally foldable side frames. A seat cushion is provided and the back is also cushioned.
Lee U.S. Pat. No. 2,847,058 (Aug. 12, 1958) is to a folding wheel chair having a centrally hinged seat hinged to a pair of side frames. A centrally hinged parallel linkage is beneath the seat sections and connected thereto by a vertical link bar.
Adler U.S. Pat. No. 2,934,134 (Apr. 26, 1960) relates to a folding seat having generally rigid seat and back frames hinged together at the seat-back juncture. Each of the seat and back frames are loosely filled by woven webbing strips.
Faulkner et al U.S. Pat. No. 3,104,913 (Sept. 24, 1963) relates to a knock-down sofa having separable frame forming members fastenable together and a slip cover therefore. Interchangeable slip covers may be provided and selectively fastened to the assembled frame. Various fastening means are used for assembling the slip covers with the frame.
Putnam U.S. Pat. No. 3,490,810 (Jan. 20, 1970) relates to a chair having a generally rigid frame onto which an upholstered or cushioned cover may be vertically lowered. The cushioned cover is invertable so as to be reversible on the frame while the cushioned sections remain joined together.
Kelley U.S. Pat. No. 3,589,770 (June 29, 1971) relates to furnature, such as couches and the like having changeable slip covers, with the couch itself being upholstered only in plain undecorative durable ticking, burlap, canvas or the like, but including all of the padding and the like. The changeable slip cover, therefore, is decorative only, serving no structural or cushioning function.
Macheu U.S. Pat. No. 3,838,883 (Oct. 1, 1974) relates to a folding chair frame of rod elements for a cover-seat only vaguely described therein but referred to as being of the "butterfly" design. The cover-seat is apparently for forming a body support sling only, and does not appear to structurally cooperate with the chair frame, there being provided a separate lugged clip to act as a stop and limit the degree to which the frame may be opened.
Miller U.S. Pat. No. 4,089,497 (May 16, 1978) does not relate to chair or seating type furniture at all. Rather it relates to bed frame rails and, more particularly, to padded caps to be fitted onto bed rails. It does, however, disclose such caps comprising padding and covering layers overlaying a resiliently compressible member of generally inverted U-shaped configuration.
Schoblom U.S. Pat. No. 4,092,049 relates to a knock-down chari construction of the armless type having a pair of molded side frame members detachably connected by a plurality of parallel tube members extending detachably therebetween together with a fabric cover stretched over the frame and tied thereto beneath the frame. The seat and back portions are, in effect, slung between the upright side frame members, are not padded in the manner of conventional upholstered furniture and the overall design is limited substantially to the design shown in the patent drawings; little freedom of design is offerred with only a straight line or parallelipiped being permissible between the side frame uprights. Hence, the design freedoms and appearance of conventional upholstered furniture can not be achieved.
Accordingly, the prior art chairs and other seating units such as are heretofore known have not been able to provide portable furniture that is light weight, easy to transport, store, set up and take down, while yet permitting of the appearance and comfort of conventional upholstered furniture.